SWAT: Muttahida Talba Mahaz and youth of Kalam here on Friday blocked the main Mingora-Kalam road in protest against shifting of proposed government degree college from Kalam to Matta tehsil.

Led by Yahya Khan, nazim Islami Jamiat Talba Malakand division, Hafiz Ibne Rozi of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Student wing, Adnan Amir Muqam of Muslim Students Federation and Naseerullah Ansari, the protesters gathered at Kalam bazaar and chanted slogans in favour of their demands.

They said that it was condemnable that the government cancelled the already approved projects of Kalam union council which was one of the most backward areas in terms of development.

They said that Kalam was a far-flung union council of Swat district having over 90,000 population where majority of people lived in hilly areas, but unfortunately they had neither a college for boys nor for girls.

“Our boys have to travel to Madyan about 50 kilometres from Kalam while the nearest college for girls is in Khwazakhela tehsil which is about 70 kilometres from Kalam,” said the protesters.

They said that majority of Kalam residents were poor who could not afford to travel long distances and stay in hostels.

They said that Chief Minister Mahmood Khan had approved a degree college for boys in 2019 in Kalam. “To our shock the college which was approved for Kalam was shifted to Matta tehsil, which is injustice with the people of Kalam,” they said.

They said that a college and hospital were also approved under the 84MW Gorkin-Matiltan Hydropower Project, Swat, in 2016 but construction work could not be started as yet while the hydropower was in the completion phase.

They said that if CM did not withdraw the decision of shifting the degree college from Kalam they would continue their protest.

“We demand of the government to immediately return our already approved college for boys, and also approve a degree college for girls and a hospital in Kalam,” they said.

Published in Dawn, July 4th, 2020